Last weekend took the ST1100 out for a couple of 250 mile days getting ready for an up coming riding vacation and the bike ran like a top no problems. Monday headed to work on the ST and a mile from the house the Oil Pressure light flickers then a quarter mile later the light comes full on. So I pull off and listen to the motor before shutting it off and it sounds ok. Checking around the bike to see if maybe I had a major leak, or holed the pan or some other reason the light might come on but found none. So put the bike on the dual stand and started the bike watching the sight glass to see if oil was being picked up (oil leaving the sight glass) and it was, I also opened the filler cap to see if the top of the motor was getting oil and it spit oil out of the filler hole. With all this I felt safe riding the bike back to the house.
One I was back at the house I let the bike cool, and then again started the bike, watched the oil drain out of the site glass and check the oil filler to see oil was making it to the head. The bike has 98,000 miles on the clock and less than 1000 miles on the most recent oil change (rotella syn, purolator filter) and the oil level was middle of the glass so I did not think it was an issue with oil or levels.
With this information figured that I had a faulty Oil Pressure Switch so ordered one and installed tonight, and the light stayed on after starting the bike. I again pull the switch and tested it with low pressure air and the switch functioned correctly (also checked the old switch and it was ok). Then I started the bike with the switch removed and the bike pumped oil out of the hole for the switch so I knew the switch was ok and oil was being pumped to the switch.
So my final test was to install the switch, start the bike, then bring the revs up to see if this affect the light at all, and it did, the light went out just above 4000 rpms so with the results it looks like I might have low oil pressure (at least I have oil pressure) which I would guess is a pump issue. I dont have any equipment to test the actual oil pressure so it looks like the pump is pumping but the pressure is not enough to trigger the switch (unground the switch). From reading my manual looks like it might be a stuck pressure relief valve or a pressure value spring.
Looking for some advice to validate my thoughts and to see if there are any other possibilities or things I might try to remedy the issue. Are there any other oil screens in the lube system (other than the filter) that might plug, or could a there be an issue with the oil filter that could cause low pressure?
Thought about changing the oil and filter to see if this would have any affect but maybe just grasping at straws with that move so might wait to see what the group thinks.
Really interested in how bike could do the 500 miles over the weekend then with in a mile of the house have a pressure issue.
Any help you could send my way would be appreciated as it looks like pulling and replacing the oil pump is a very involved project with having to pull the clutch to get the pump out, plus if I was in that far I would just replace the pump instead of rebuilding. Plus this points to having to change bikes for my trip which I hate to do as my ST is the travelling bike in the garage.
Again thanks in advance.
Greg D.
STOC906
2001 ST1100
1995 ST1100 RIP
One I was back at the house I let the bike cool, and then again started the bike, watched the oil drain out of the site glass and check the oil filler to see oil was making it to the head. The bike has 98,000 miles on the clock and less than 1000 miles on the most recent oil change (rotella syn, purolator filter) and the oil level was middle of the glass so I did not think it was an issue with oil or levels.
With this information figured that I had a faulty Oil Pressure Switch so ordered one and installed tonight, and the light stayed on after starting the bike. I again pull the switch and tested it with low pressure air and the switch functioned correctly (also checked the old switch and it was ok). Then I started the bike with the switch removed and the bike pumped oil out of the hole for the switch so I knew the switch was ok and oil was being pumped to the switch.
So my final test was to install the switch, start the bike, then bring the revs up to see if this affect the light at all, and it did, the light went out just above 4000 rpms so with the results it looks like I might have low oil pressure (at least I have oil pressure) which I would guess is a pump issue. I dont have any equipment to test the actual oil pressure so it looks like the pump is pumping but the pressure is not enough to trigger the switch (unground the switch). From reading my manual looks like it might be a stuck pressure relief valve or a pressure value spring.
Looking for some advice to validate my thoughts and to see if there are any other possibilities or things I might try to remedy the issue. Are there any other oil screens in the lube system (other than the filter) that might plug, or could a there be an issue with the oil filter that could cause low pressure?
Thought about changing the oil and filter to see if this would have any affect but maybe just grasping at straws with that move so might wait to see what the group thinks.
Really interested in how bike could do the 500 miles over the weekend then with in a mile of the house have a pressure issue.
Any help you could send my way would be appreciated as it looks like pulling and replacing the oil pump is a very involved project with having to pull the clutch to get the pump out, plus if I was in that far I would just replace the pump instead of rebuilding. Plus this points to having to change bikes for my trip which I hate to do as my ST is the travelling bike in the garage.
Again thanks in advance.
Greg D.
STOC906
2001 ST1100
1995 ST1100 RIP
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